Pesticide label language update New information could restrict or limit use around endangered, threatened species habitat

Growers and pesticide applicators should be aware of new language on pesticide labels that could restrict or limit pesticide use in certain areas where endangered or threatened species are found.

The language will normally be found in the directions for use section of the label, indicating endangered species concerns and containing verbage similar to the following:

Endangered Species Protection Requirements: It is a federal offense to use any pesticide in a manner that results in an unauthorized “take” (e.g., kill or otherwise harm) of an endangered species and certain threatened species under the Endangered Species Act Section 9. When using this product, you must follow the measures contained in the Endangered Species Protection Bulletin for the area in which you are applying the product. You must obtain a bulletin no earlier than six months before using this product. To obtain bulletins, consult http://www.epa.gov/espp/, call 1-844-447-3813, or email ESPP@epa.gov. You must use the Bulletin valid for the month in which you apply the product.

Growers are directed to an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) website where they can enter the pesticide EPA registration number (typically found on the front page of the label below the list of active ingredients) and the month and location of the planned application. If the planned application is in an area designated as a Pesticide Use Limitation Area, or PULA, the grower will need to download a bulletin that contains pesticide restrictions or use limitations for that area.

“Right now, the biggest concerns in Washington are different species of salmon and trout. Some areas of Eastern Washington don’t have PULAs, because not all water bodies are habitat for migratory fish,” explained Henry Wetzel, a pesticide recertification safety educator at Washington State University. “The bulletin is essentially an extension of the pesticide label. Once you learn where you are applying the pesticide, if you have a potential to cause problems with an endangered or threatened species, the bulletin is going to give you a script on what you should or should not do to minimize the impact.”

Wetzel added that bulletins may ban application of the pesticide at that location at that time or list the requirements that need to be met to apply the product, such as no forecasted precipitation events, with greater than 50% chance of occurrence of 1 inch or more of rainfall, for 48 hours following an application. A big challenge for growers will be keeping up with the active ingredients that might have bulletins associated with them, as the list keeps growing. As of mid-June, there were nine active ingredients that have bulletins in Washington:

• Herbicides: Bromoxynil, Prometryn, and Metolachlor
• Insecticides: Cyantraniliprole, Chlorpyrifos, Diazinon, Dimethoate, and Malathion
• Soil Fumigant: 1,3-dichloropropene

Scott Nielsen, pesticide compliance program manager for the Washington State Department of Agriculture (WSDA), said the department has been working to get the word out on the bulletins since last fall. He confirmed that some pesticide containers packaged in January 2024 and in the channels of trade have the new language included on labels.

“We are really trying to instruct growers, applicators how to use the labels. How to go into the Bulletins Live! Two website, how to look up the EPA registration number, and find your own farm,” he said. “It’s not really a problem if you aren’t in a PULA, but if you see the pink area in your fields, then you have to obtain the bulletin and follow the instructions. You’ve got six months in advance of the application to be able to pull off the bulletin, but you need to pull it off for month you intend to apply (the pesticide).”

When doing normal applicator inspections, WSDA will be checking to see if the applicator has checked for a bulletin and if they are in compliance with the bulletin’s requirements. Applicators aren’t required to keep copies of bulletins, but if an application is made in a PULA, Wetzel recommended keeping a copy just in case.

While Eastern Washington growers who don’t farm on salmon-bearing streams might be less impacted by the new regulations, that relief is likely to be short-lived. The EPA is working on strategies for herbicides, insecticides, fungicides, and rodenticides that will include endangered species mitigation activities that applicators will need to take. Growers who want to spray a field adjacent to an area where an endangered plant is located may have to take additional precautions. While details haven’t been finalized for these additional mitigations, Nielsen said many dryland farmers have likely already implemented some of the practices the EPA will be requiring to reduce surface runoff. 

“The best way for growers to know if they have an active ingredient of concern is to look at the pesticide labels on the containers. If they see that endangered species statement on there, and go through the bulletins process, do what is expected to minimize impacts on endangered and threatened species and their habitats, everything should be fine,” Wetzel said.

The WSU Small Grains website has published several timely topics on the new pesticide labels. More information is at WSDA’s website and at EPA’s website.